Mathematical Treasure: Leibniz’s Arte Combinatoria

In 1666, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716) published his doctoral dissertation at Leipzig University. In his Dissertation de Arte Combinatoria, he attempted to reduce all reason to combinations of basic elements: sounds, numbers, words, etc.

The frontispiece depicts the interactions between the Four Elements and the Four Humors.

The images above are presented courtesy of the University of Pennsylvania Libraries.

Index to Mathematical Treasures